The Ladies Who Launch

Taking their cue from Jane Austen,these ladies were convinced that a single (or married) man in possession of a large fortune must be in need of a wife (or a divorce). They set out with steely resolve in this noble objective of snaring a loaded Lothario and had no qualms whatsoever in eliminating any wives or girlfriends who stood between them and their object of desire.

These,now,were the Ladies who Lunged. Having succeeded in marrying money,one would imagine that these determined divas would be content leading a life of idyllic bliss — vacationing in Tuscany,shopping up a storm in Paris,fighting off other predatory females in Golf Links and Malabar Hill.

But no — these bored housewives wanted more. They wanted to be known as women of substance. And since many of their husbands were already established men of substance abuse,incarcerated for long periods in Tihar jail,they had plenty of time to embark on various business ventures between their otherwise risqué misadventures.

And so we witnessed the birth of a new phenomenon — the Ladies who Launch.

Some decided to launch themselves as fashion designers. They enlisted the services of a local Masterji or some poor fashion school graduate who did all the dreary darzi work whilst they themselves primped and preened on Page 3.

Other women launched themselves as interior designers and went about desecrating the urban landscape with impunity. Still others had a gem of an idea and positioned themselves as jewellery designers whilst a bevy of beauties became art dealers and opened galleries in their garages despite being recently unable to distinguish between Frida Kahlo and Freida Pinto.

Some took to launching luxury brands whilst others anointed themselves as artists and had sold-out exhibitions even though they were hitherto famous only for their ability to paint the town red.

Now,whilst it is easy to snigger at these erstwhile ladies of leisure,it is they who have the last laugh,chortling all the way to the bank,having achieved enviable success within an admirably short period of time. This is because this hallowed group of uber-rich women form a tight coterie,indeed a cartel,where they support and sustain each other in every enterprise.

Industrialist’s spouses and daughters,Bollywood wives and a few other society swans ensure they buy each other’s “designer” clothes,jewellery and art. They commission their friends to decorate their homes and patronise their vanity projects in a tacit quid pro quo. Extensive media coverage is automatically ensured by the very presence of their celebrity chums and it helps greatly that many magazines are actually owned by their spouses.

The great Indian Middle Class merely gapes in wonder and aspires to be like them someday — perfectly manicured mannequins exultant in their mediocrity. So let’s raise a toast to our modern Renaissance women — the ladies who lunch,lunge and launch with admirable aplomb,invincible in the knowledge that nothing succeeds like success.

Fahad Samar is a filmmaker,intrepid traveller and inveterate chronicler of society,samarofdiscontent@gmail.com